Many colleagues who live abroad, and others who live in the United States but grew up somewhere else, have asked me about the holidays in the United States. Many visitors to the U.S. are often confused when they see holidays where everything is closed, holidays where some things are closed, and holidays where everything is closed in one place and open somewhere else. I thought this was a good time to explain our unique holiday schedule because on the third Monday in February, we observe Presidents’ Day, our third federal holiday of the year. This apparent chaos is really a manifestation of the fifty states’ sovereign powers, and the result of the different history, culture, origins, interests, and values of each one.

The United States is a federation of fifty states and each state has its own legislation and decision-making process. Because of this system Americans have two types of holidays: Those determined by the United States Congress, and observed in all fifty states, are called federal holidays; and those that have been declared by state and local governments, and are only observed in a specific state, county, or city. The latter ones are state or local holidays. By comparison with other countries the United States has very few federal holidays, but the states are a different story.

All federal government offices close on federal holidays but the state and local governments remain open unless the federal holiday is also a state holiday. Federal government offices continue to work on state holidays, and sometimes, only city or county offices may close for the day in observance of a local holiday to honor a local hero or commemorate an event of great importance at the city level. Unless they are government workers, Americans go to work on many holidays. To the foreign observer, a good rule to remember is that on federal holidays, all federal government offices, banks, and the post office will be closed. On state holidays, all state government offices and public schools will be closed. The rest of the American people will have the day off during major federal holidays, and the citizens of a particular state will not have to work on a local holiday, even if the rest of the country does. It is only on major holidays, which are observed at the state and federal level, that everybody enjoys a day away from the workplace.

On January 1, 1971 Congress passed the “Uniform Monday Holiday Act” which shifted most holidays to a Monday in the month where the original holiday was observed. The states followed the same system shortly after. There are 10 federal holidays in the United States:

New Year’s Day. January 1*

Martin Luther King Jr. Day. Third Monday in January

Presidents’ Day. Third Monday in February

Memorial Day. Last Monday in May*

Independence Day. July 4*

Labor Day. First Monday in September*

Columbus Day. Second Monday in October

Veterans Day. November 11

Thanksgiving Day. Fourth Thursday in November*

Christmas Day. December 25*

*Major federal holidays.

All government offices are closed on them all.

Except for Presidents Day and Veterans Day, all 50 states observe the rest of the federal holidays as state holidays. The states that do not observe Presidents Day as a state holiday are:

Delaware

Georgia

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

North Carolina

Rhode Island

Wisconsin

Some states opted out of this holiday because they honor Washington and Lincoln on a different date.

The only state not to observe Veterans Day is Wisconsin. At the inception of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, some counties in Arizona considered not observing the holiday.

There are many reasons for the states’ holidays, some are historical, like Mississippi’s Robert E. Lee’s Birthday in January, Hawaii’s King Kamehameha Day in June, or Massachusetts’ Patriots Day in April. Other are cultural, like California’s Cesar Chavez Day in May, or Maryland’s American Indian Heritage Day in November. Other holidays have a practical reason to exist, like Indiana’s Primary Election Day in May, and General Election Day in November; some are for convenience like designating the fourth Friday in November as a holiday, under different names, in many states, and some are religious, like Kansas’ Christmas Eve in December, or Delaware’s Good Friday. There are also local holidays observed in a particular city or county, not the rest of the state. To honor Casimir Pulaski (Kazimierz Pulaski), a War of Independence hero born in Poland, the City of Chicago, and Cook County, Illinois, observe Pulaski Day on the first Monday of every March. On that day, Chicago and Cook County government offices are closed, and children leaving in Chicago do not go to school.

Some states have no state holidays. The following States have no State holidays, only federal:

Arizona

Colorado

Florida

Idaho

Oregon

Wyoming

Also keep in mind there are certain “celebrations in the United States” that are treated like holidays even though they are not: Super Bowl Sunday in February, Cinco de Mayo in May, and St. Patrick’s Day in March are not official holidays and everybody works on those dates.

This is the complete list of all state holidays in the United States by state:

Alabama

Mon Jan 15 Robert E. Lee’s Birthday

Tue Feb 13 Mardi Grass Day

Mon Apr 23 Confederate Memorial Day

Mon Jun 4 Jefferson Davis Birthday

Alaska

Mon Mar 26 Seward’s Day

Thu Oct 18 Alaska Day

Arkansas

Mon Jan 15 Robert E. Lee’s Birthday

Mon Feb 19 Daisy Gatson Bates Day

Mon Dec 24 Christmas Eve

California

Sun Feb 4 Rosa Parks Day

Sat Mar 31 Cesar Chavez Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Connecticut

Mon Feb 12 Lincoln’s Birthday

Fri Mar 31 Good Friday

Delaware

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

Thu Nov 8 Return Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

District of Columbia

Mon Apr 16 DC Emancipation Day

Georgia

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Mon Apr 23 Confederate Memorial Day

Fri Nov 23 Georgia State Holiday

Mon Dec 24 Washington’s Birthday Holiday (Following year on Dec 26)

Hawaii

Mon Mar 26 Prince Jonah Kuhio Kalanianaole Day

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Mon June 11 King Kamehameha Day

Fri Aug 17 Statehood Day

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

Illinois

Mon Feb 12 Lincoln’s Birthday

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Indiana

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Tue May 8 Primary Election Day

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

Fri Nov 23 Lincoln’s Birthday Holiday

Mon Dec 24 Washington’s Birthday Holiday (Following year on Dec 26)

Iowa

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Kansas

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Mon Dec 24 Christmas Eve

Kentucky

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Mon Dec 24 Christmas Eve

Mon Dec 31 New Year’s Eve

Louisiana

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Tue Feb 13 Mardi Gras Day

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

Maine

Mon Apr 16 Patriots Day

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Maryland

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

Fri Nov 23 American Indian Heritage Day

Massachusetts

Mon Apr 16 Patriots Day

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Michigan

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Mon Dec 24 Christmas Eve

Mon Dec 31 New Year’s Eve

Minnesota

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Mississippi

Mon Jan 15 Robert E. Lee’s Birthday

Mon Apr 30 Confederate Memorial Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Missouri

Mon Feb 12 Lincoln’s Birthday

Tue May 8 Truman Day

Montana

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

Nebraska

Fri Apr 27 Arbor Day

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Nevada

Fri Oct 26 Nevada Day

Fri Nov 23 Family Day

New Hampshire

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

New Jersey

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

New Mexico

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Fri Nov 23 Presidents Day Holiday

New York

Mon Feb 12 Lincoln’s Birthday

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

North Carolina

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Mon Dec 24 Christmas Eve

Wed Dec 26 Christmas Holiday

North Dakota

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Ohio

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Sat Dec 1 Rosa Parks Day

Oklahoma

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Wed Dec 26 Christmas Holiday

Pennsylvania

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Rhode Island

*Does not observe Presidents Day

Mon Aug 13 Victory Day

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Tue Nov 6 General Election Day

South Carolina

Thu May 10 Confederate Memorial Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Mon Dec 24 Christmas Eve

Wed Dec 26 Christmas Holiday

South Dakota

Mon Oct 8 Native American Day

Tennessee

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Wed Dec 26 Christmas Holiday

Texas

Fri Jan 19 Confederate Heroes Day

Fri Mar 2 Texas Independence Day

Fri Mar 30 Good Friday

Sat Mar 31 Cesar Chávez Day

Sat Apr 21 San Jacinto Day

Tue Jun 19 Juneteenth

Mon Aug 27 Lyndon B Johnson Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Mon Dec 24 Christmas Eve

Wed Dec 26 Christmas Holiday

Utah

Tue Jul 24 Pioneer Day

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Vermont

Tue Mar 6 Town Meeting Day

Thu Aug 16 Bennington Battle Day

Virginia

Fri Jan 12 Lee-Jackson Day

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

WashingtonFri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

West VirginiaWed Jun 20 West Virginia Day

Mon Oct 8 Columbus Day

Fri Nov 23 Thanksgiving Friday

Wisconsin*Does not observe Presidents Day

*Does not observe Veterans Day

Mon Dec 24 Christmas Eve

Mon Dec 31 New Year’s Eve

I hope this brief explanation, and comprehensive holiday list, help you to understand better the holiday calendar of the United States. I now invite you to comment on this subject.

I am about to deal with a very touchy, delicate, dangerous, and polarizing issue. For this reason, I want to begin this post by clarifying that I have always observed all antitrust legislation, domestic, foreign, and international, everywhere I have worked, spoken, and in any other way practiced any professional activity. In no way I intend to encourage, suggest, hint, or in any other way provoke the desire to break any antitrust legislation anywhere in the world; and even though I may intellectually and philosophically disagree with part of the antitrust policy and legislation, I am firmly committed to fully obey the law if it remains as is.

Once the above is very clear, I would like to revisit this issue that most colleagues usually dodge, and perhaps for good reason. My intention here is to inform my colleagues about the legislation and policy about agreeing as professional service providers to set professional fees. There is a lot of misinformation, and urban legends around. I hope this piece contributes to dissipate some, and to raise awareness on the situation we have and what can be legally done to enact change, if you really want that.

My motivation to write about this issue came from some news I got about certain events in the Czech Republic, where apparently UOHS, the local Czech antitrust authority initiated proceedings against Jednota tlumocniku a prekladatelu (JTP) the main professional association of interpreters and translators in that country, because of the publication of recommended minimum rates for translation and interpreting professional services on their internal journal (reaching about 500 members) arguing there could be a potential violation of Czech antitrust legislation. Shortly after this happened, JTP settled with the authorities and withdrew said recommended rates with an agreement to abstain from publishing them again.

Czech legislation is very similar to prevailing legislation in the European Union, the United States and elsewhere, prohibiting “…agreements (including decisions of associations) containing provisions on direct or indirect price fixing or other business terms and conditions…” This legislation takes generally adopted terminology when it states on a later paragraph that: “… The prohibition… shall not apply to agreements (that) do not afford… the possibility of eliminating competition in respect to a substantial part of the market…”

I sympathize with all my interpreter and translator colleagues in the Czech Republic. I have often questioned the moral justification and ultimate purpose of all antitrust legislation. It comes to us as a gift from the past when legislation such as this was needed to protect regular citizens from colluded corporations and tolerant governments. We could argue those days are gone; that antitrust legislation is necessary in certain cases, but rarely when it comes to a regular individual trying to earn a living selling goods or providing a service as a freelancer.

Unfortunately, moral considerations also encompass our duty to respect and obey the law, in the understanding that if we dislike it, or disagree with it, we must pursue change by legal means such as lobbying for (in this case) more realistic legislation that reflects the reality of life in the 21st century. Disregarding the law, even if we deem it wrong is not the best answer to solve a problem.

Let’s look at the pieces of legislation widely applied throughout the world, that serve as a model for practically all antitrust legislation.

First, a very important concept difficult to understand (and accept):

Long arm of the law:

In the United States, a Long Arm Statute is a statute allowing a state to exercise personal jurisdiction over a non-resident defendant with certain contacts with the state.

Black’s Law Dictionary: It is a term where a law of a state gives its courts jurisdiction over people and property outside the state.

The United States subscribes to this legal theory and constantly exercises it, and applies to acts and individuals throughout the world. To properly exercise long-arm jurisdiction over a non-resident defendant, the plaintiff’s cause of action must also arise out of one (or more) of the enumerated bases for jurisdiction set out by the state’s long-arm statute. Some of the most common instances include buying, selling, producing, or transporting goods to, from, or through U.S. territory; dealing with people or corporations with some contact with the United States (even if minimum). If country “A” sells a product to country “B”, and the product is transported on a plane or vessel in possession of a registration under country “C”, but the vessel uses American fuel to transport the goods, all parties from countries “A”, “B”, and “C” are under U.S. jurisdiction because of “the long arm of the law” theory. The same happens when a translator from the Czech Republic or elsewhere translates a document used in the United States, even if the direct client is from a third country, and according to more recent tendencies, even if the only contact with the U.S. was that said product was advertised on line using an American internet provider or a platform such as Google, Microsoft or Apple.

Even if a non-resident defendant is subject to personal jurisdiction under a state’s long arm statute, a court within the forum state may not exercise jurisdiction over that defendant if doing so would violate the Due Process Clause of the US Constitution. To satisfy the Due Process Clause, the defendant’s contacts with the state must be so it would “not offend traditional notions of fair play and substantial justice” to require the defendant to litigate in the forum. Courts in the U.S., the European Union and elsewhere have determined that satisfying the requirements on the examples above, and affording the defendant a court hearing will comply with such legal requirements.

The Sherman Act

The main antitrust legislation in the United States, and the oldest (still current) antitrust legislation worldwide is the Sherman Act from the United States. It describes what conduct “Involves” import commerce, and gives the FTAIA and Justice Department main authority to deal with antitrust investigations and prosecution. It does not bar Sherman Act claims that “involve import commerce.” Several courts have recently been asked to consider what sort of “involvement” with import commerce is sufficient. The Third Circuit in Animal Science Products rejected the notion that the “import commerce” exception is limited to physical importers of goods, thus, it applies to service providers like interpreters and translators. The court defined conduct “involving import commerce” as conduct “directed at” or “targeted at” the U.S. import market. Although the original Minn-Chem Seventh Circuit panel agreed with this approach, neither court gave clear guidance on how to apply this standard.

Is a subjective intent to harm the U.S. import market required? Or is it sufficient to allege a global conspiracy to fix prices or set production limits that had as a consequence (as opposed to its focus or target) higher U.S. import prices? The DOJ’s view is that the FTAIA requires no subjective intent to harm U.S. import commerce and that a price-fixing conspiracy involves U.S. import commerce even “if the conspirators set prices for products sold around the world (so long as the agreement includes products sold into the United States) and even if only a relatively small proportion or dollar amount of the price fixed goods were sold into the United States.” [Minn-Chem Inc. v. Agrium Inc., No. 10-1712, Brief for the United States and the Federal Trade Commission as amici curiae in support of neither party on rehearing en banc (Jan. 12, 2012), at pp. 19] Remember the example of the vessel above.

We can conclude that in the current environment, foreign companies involved in the manufacture or distribution of products (goods and services) outside the United States can no longer assume that the U.S. antitrust laws do not apply to their activities. This is an evolving area of the law with substantial uncertainty. It will take time for these issues to be sorted out in the courts and for clarity to emerge regarding the extraterritorial reach of the U.S. antitrust laws. Until then, a case-by-case analysis will be required to properly assess foreign companies’ potential exposure to criminal penalties (significant fines and jail sentences) and civil damages for violations of the U.S. antitrust laws. Because litigation before American courts is very costly, and the losing party is not required, as a matter of law, to pay for the legal expenses of the prevailing party, defendants often settle their cases and abstain from violating antitrust legislation before reaching a final resolution. This was the case of the American Translators Association (ATA) an association incorporated in the United States. ATA had a “Rate Guidelines Committee” (RGC) that once a year published a list of fees it recommended translators consider. It is possible that said rates (or fees) were reprinted by other professional associations of translators. In 1990 some interpreter and translator professional associations in the United States became the target of antitrust investigation by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC). By 1994 at least two of the organizations: “The American Association of Language Specialists” (TAALS) and the “American Society of Interpreters” (ASI) had signed consent decrees in which the press reported they agreed, among other points, to halt any meetings at which two of those present mentioned rates or fees. After two years of investigation, and significant money spent in defending the association, ATA was notified by the FTC in March 1994 that the investigation had been closed. ATA had approved an strict antitrust policy seven months before the FTC investigation, and this probably contributed to the decision to close the inquiry. In closing the case, the FTC issued a statement indicating that the closure did not mean that a violation had not occurred. The Commission also reserved the right to “…take such further action as the public interest may require…” Three years later, the FTC issued a cease-and-desist order to the International Association of Conference Interpreters (AIIC) after finding AIIC in violation of U.S. antitrust law. The association also chose a settlement obligating them to abstain from discussing fees (or rates) in public.

US versus EU Antitrust Law

Regarding Antitrust Law, the similarities on both sides of the Atlantic outweigh the remaining differences by far. This holds true, at any rate, today, after more than 100 years of legal development.

The central difference was initially that the relevant U.S.-American law is much older. The Sherman Act dates from 1890, the Clayton Act, which introduced merger control, from 1914 (with a significant improvement by the Celler-Kefauver Act in 1950). These laws were not only existent on paper. They were rigorously enforced in practice. National competition laws in Europe developed mainly after the Second World War. Their development was triggered by introducing the rules on competition in the European Community in 1958. The latter induced many of the Member States, e.g. Italy, to introduce laws against restraints of competition for the first time.

A difference between the legal systems lies in the role of the state. In the USA, antitrust is a matter for private actors. In Europe, the role of the state was inevitably involved. This was due to the extensive involvement of the state in the economy

A common feature of the competition law regimes on both sides of the Atlantic is that they claim for themselves a wide international reach (long arm of the law). It suffices that a restraint of competition has effects within their own territory, regardless of where and by what enterprise it is effected (“effects doctrine” or “extraterritorial application of competition law”). A difference lies in the U.S. Antitrust Law’s better ability to assert itself: Uncle Sam has a very long arm. This is due to the USA usually making up half of the “world-wide market”. No globally acting enterprise can afford not to be present on the U.S.-American market. This inexorably leads to the result it can be caught by the American jurisdiction with no strain. Translators, interpreters, and professional interpreter and translator associations must know of this before taking any action.

Regarding the procedure, both legal systems build upon a rule of law, which is more pronounced in the United States than in Europe. A remarkable difference consists in the fact that in the USA, approximately 75% of all antitrust cases are brought by way of private enforcement

Under American civil procedure law, the American rule prevails. I.e., a defendant wrongly sued has to bear his own legal costs. The unsuccessful plaintiff need not reimburse them. This creates a significant potential for threat in the hands of an economically strong plaintiff. The civil procedure can mutate into an instrument for restraining competition. Just imagine a case between IAPTI and the U.S. Department of Justice. The deepest pockets will prevail.

European Union

Czech Republic and all members of the EU must comply with EU antitrust policy and legislation.

European antitrust policy is developed from two central rules set out in the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union:

First, Article 101 of the Treaty prohibits agreements between two or more independent market operators which restrict competition. This provision covers both horizontal agreements (between actual or potential competitors operating at the same level of the supply chain) and vertical agreements (between firms operating at different levels, i.e. agreement between a manufacturer and its distributor). Only limited exceptions are provided for in the general prohibition. The most flagrant example of illegal conduct infringing Article 101 is the creation of a cartel between competitors, which may involve price-fixing and/or market sharing.

Second, Article 102 of the Treaty prohibits firms that hold a dominant position on a given market to abuse that position, for example by charging unfair prices, by limiting production, or by refusing to innovate to the prejudice of consumers.

The Commission is empowered by the Treaty to apply these rules and has several investigative powers (e.g. inspection at business and non-business premises, written requests for information, etc.). The Commission may impose fines on undertakings which violate the EU antitrust rules.

National Competition Authorities (NCAs) are empowered to apply Articles 101 and 102 of the Treaty fully, to ensure that competition is not distorted or restricted. National courts may also apply these provisions to protect the individual rights conferred on citizens by the Treaty. Building on these achievements, the communication on ten years of antitrust enforcement identified further areas to create a common competition enforcement area in the EU.

As part of the overall enforcement of EU competition law, the Commission has also developed and implemented a policy on applying EU competition law to actions for damages before national courts. It also cooperates with national courts to ensure that EU competition rules are applied coherently throughout the EU.

Best Practices on Cooperation in Merger Investigations

The revised Best Practices include an expanded section on remedies and settlements that details cooperation throughout the remedial process, emphasizing that early and frequent cooperation in this phase is important to avoid inconsistent or conflicting remedies, especially when remedies may include an up-front buyer and/or Phase I remedy in the EU. The revised Best Practices also underscore the critical role that the parties play in ensuring effective cooperation in this phase, including timely coordination of their remedy proposals with the reviewing agencies to allow for meaningful cooperation before either agency decides. Besides avoiding the risk of inconsistent or conflicting remedies, such meaningful cooperation in the remedial phase can cause the acceptance of common remedy proposals or even the appointment of common trustees or monitors, which is in both the agencies’ and the parties’ interest.

Recognizing that legal professional privileges differ between the U.S. and the EU, how are in-house counsel communications protections maintained once waivers of confidentiality are granted? The Best Practices note that the agencies will accept a stipulation in parties’ waivers given to DG Competition that excludes from the scope of the waiver evidence properly identified by the parties as and qualifies for the in-house counsel privilege under U.S. law. This is only an example of the European Union accommodating U.S. legislation in antitrust matters. There are other instances.

Antitrust legislation in Latin America

There has been antitrust law in some of the Latin American countries for many years. Brazil was the first to have such a law, but for many years enforcement was desultory. Then in the 1980s and 1990s scores of other countries around the world enacted or strengthened their antitrust laws, and this included Latin American jurisdictions such as Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico and others.

A few jurisdictions had become fairly consistent in enforcing their antitrust laws, including Brazil and Mexico.

Continuing with the reforms, the new authorities of the Argentine Antitrust Commission (the “Antitrust Commission“) released a draft of the new Antitrust Law, which seeks to bring Argentina into line with the international experience in this matter: The Ley de Defensa de la Competencia (As far as I know) passed in the lower chamber when the diputados voted for it, and it is pending approval by the Senate. Among the reforms envisaged are:

Tougher sanctions, increasing fines up to 30% of turnover associated with products or services involved in the anti-competitive act; The creation of a National Antitrust Authority as a decentralized and self-governing body within the national executive branch, in replacement of the Antitrust Commission and of the Secretary of Commerce; The facilitation of private actions for damages against violators of the law; and the creation of a National Antitrust Court of Appeals to replace the uncertainty on which Court of Appeals is competent regarding antitrust matters.

The long arm of the law theory, and current practices and cooperation of all major international players, including the United States, European Union, and others will make it almost impossible to go against current policy and legislation. There is a great likelihood that many complaints will go to the U.S. courts because of the high cost of litigation and the absence of any legal basis for the losing party to pay for prevailing party’s legal fees and costs.

A Private Citizen’s Freedom of Speech.

Individuals may exercise their freedom of speech and speak, write, publish, and in any other way disseminate their opposition to legislation and policy. It will take a change of heart by the authorities, and current cultural values, to change this legislation and bring it to the reality of solo practitioners trying to make a living in the 21st. century. I now invite you to share your thoughts on this issue, remembering that no comment suggesting fees or rates will be included in this blog.

On February 4 the United States will hold a very American event; it is the most watched TV event in our country, and the day when the game is played is an unofficial holiday that is more popular than most holidays on the official calendar. I am referring to the Super Bowl: The national professional football championship game in the United States of America; and it is not football… at least not THAT football played in the rest of the world. This popular sport in the United States is known abroad as “American football,” and even this designation seems troublesome to many who have watched a little American football and do not understand it well. Although it is mainly played holding a ball, the sport is known in the United States as football for two reasons: (1) Because this American-born sport comes from “rugby football” (now rugby) that came from soccer (football outside the United States) and (2) Because it is football, but it is not British organized football, which when American football invented was called “association football” and was later known by the second syllable of the word “association”: “socc” which mutated into “soccer.” You now understand where the name came from, but is it really football? For Americans it is. Remember that all other popular team sports in the United States are played with your hands or a stick (baseball, basketball and ice hockey). The only sport in the United States where points can be scored by kicking the ball is (American) football. So, even though most of the time the ball is carried by hand or caught with your hands, sometimes, a team scores or defends field position by kicking or punting the football. Now, why is all this relevant to us as interpreters? Because if you interpret from American English you are likely to run into speakers who will talk about the Super Bowl, football, or will use examples taken from this very popular sport in the U.S.

On Sunday, most Americans will gather in front of the TV set to watch the National Football Conference champion Philadelphia Eagles battle the American Football Conference champion New England Patriots for the Vince Lombardi Trophy (official name of the trophy given to the team that wins the Super Bowl) which incidentally is a trophy in the shape of a football, not a bowl. It is because the game was not named after a trophy, it was named after a tradition. There are two football levels in the United States: college football played by amateur students, and professional football. College football is older than pro-football and for many decades the different college champions were determined by playing invitational football games at the end of the college football season on New Year’s Day. These games were called (and still are) “Bowls.” You may have heard of the Rose Bowl, Cotton Bowl, Orange Bowl, Sugar Bowl, and many others. When a professional football game was created to determine the over-all champion between the champions of the American and National Conferences, it was just natural (and profitable) to call it the “Super Bowl.”

Although the game will involve two teams representing two regions, the game itself will be played in Minneapolis, Minnesota in a covered stadium due to the cold temperatures in that part of the country this time of the year. There will be millions watching the match, and there will be hundreds of millions spent on TV commercials during the game.

As I do every year on these dates, I have included a basic glossary of English<>Spanish football terms that may be useful to you, particularly those of you who do escort, diplomatic, and conference interpreting from American English to Mexican Spanish. “American” football is very popular in Mexico (where they have college football) Eventually, many of you will face situations where two people will discuss the Super Bowl; as you are interpreting somebody will tell a football story during a presentation; or you may end up at a TV or radio studio simultaneously interpreting a football game for your own or another foreign market.

The following glossary does not cover every term in football; it includes terms very common, and where there were several translations of a football term, I selected the term used in Mexico by the Mexican media that covers the sport.

ENGLISH

SPANISH

Football

Fútbol Americano

National Football League

Liga Nacional de Fútbol Americano

NFL

N-F-L (ene-efe-ele)

American Football Conference

Conferencia Americana

National Football Conference

Conferencia Nacional

Preseason

Pretemporada

Regular season

Temporada regular

Playoffs

Postemporada

Wildcard

Equipo comodín

Standings

Tabla de posiciones

Field

Terreno de juego

End zone

Zona de anotación/ diagonales

Locker room

Vestidor

Super Bowl

Súper Tazón

Pro Bowl

Tazón Profesional/ Juego de estrellas

Uniform & Equipment

Uniforme y Equipo

Football

Balón/ Ovoide

Jersey

Jersey

Helmet

Casco

Facemask

Máscara

Chinstrap

Barbiquejo

Shoulder pads

Hombreras

Thigh pads

Musleras

Knee pads

Rodilleras

Jockstrap

Suspensorio

Cleats

Tacos

Tee

Base

Fundamentals

Términos básicos

Starting player

Titular

Backup player

Reserva

Offense

Ofensiva

Defense

Defensiva

Special teams

Equipos especiales

Kickoff

Patada/ saque

Punt

Despeje

Return

Devolución

Fair catch

Recepción libre

Possession

Posesión del balón

Drive

Marcha/ avance

First and ten

Primero y diez

First and goal

Primero y gol

Line of scrimmage

Línea de golpeo

Neutral zone

Zona neutral

Snap

Centro

Long snap

Centro largo/ centro al pateador

Huddle

Pelotón

Pocket

Bolsillo protector

Fumble

Balón libre

Turnover

Pérdida de balón

Takeaway

Robo

Giveaway

Entrega

Interception

Intercepción

Completion

Pase completo

Tackle

Tacleada/ derribada

Blitz

Carga

Pass rush

Presión al mariscal de campo

Sack

Captura

Run/ carry

Acarreo

Pass

Pase

“I” Formation

Formación “I”

Shotgun Formation

Formación escopeta

“T” Formation

Formación “T”

Wishbone Formation

Formación wishbone

Goal posts

Postes

Crossbar

Travesaño

Sidelines

Líneas laterales/ banca

Chain

Cadena

Out-of-bounds

Fuera del terreno

Head Coach

Entrenador en jefe

Game Officials

Jueces

Flag

Pañuelo

POSITIONS

POSICIONES

Center

Centro

Guard

Guardia

Offensive Tackle

Tacleador ofensivo

Offensive line

Línea ofensiva

End

Ala

Wide Receiver

Receptor abierto

Tight end

Ala cerrada

Running Back

Corredor

Halfback

Corredor

Fullback

Corredor de poder

Quarterback

Mariscal de campo

Backfield

Cuadro defensivo

Defensive end

Ala defensiva

Defensive tackle

Tacleador defensivo

Nose guard

Guardia nariz

Linebacker

Apoyador

Cornerback

Esquinero

Free safety

Profundo libre

Strong safety

Profundo fuerte

Place kicker

Pateador

Punter

Pateador de despeje

Penalty

Castigo

Even if you are not a football fan, and even if you are not watching the big game on Sunday, I hope you find this glossary useful. Now I invite you to comment on football, sports interpreting in general, or maybe you would like to share a “sports interpreting anecdote” with all of us.

A few months ago I came back to the booth after a break during an event I was interpreting and I found my boothmate talking to one of the conference attendees. He was asking for her permission to bring a digital recorder inside the booth because he wanted to record the interpretation of the conference. Before my colleague responded, I explained to the gentleman that recording an interpreter rendition is more complex than simply asking the interpreter. I told him that it would not be possible to record us, and I asked him to talk to the event organizers who would work on all clearances and legal documents needed before anything could be recorded to be played back at a later time. He understood my polite negative, picked up his microphone and recording devise, and exited the booth.

Once we were alone, my boothmate told me she did not know that anything other than our consent was needed. She told me that often, other organizers and agencies had recorded her rendition without even asking for her permission. I was very surprised.

The United States and many other countries have enacted legislation that protect intellectual property. There are also international conventions to protect patents, trademarks, and copyrights covering tangible and intangible products discovered, invented, or created by the human mind. The use and exploitation of this intellectual property without the authorization of the author violates law and perpetrators are subject to both criminal and civil liability.

Only after the author, or legal holder, of an intellectual property right has consented to its use or exploitation this can be manufactured, sold, printed, reproduced, or used. Because the protected intellectual property is the work product of an individual, this inventor, creator, or author must be compensated. Such compensation is called royalties.

American legislation defines royalties as “…a percentage of gross or net profit, or a fixed amount per sale to which a creator of a work is entitled which is agreed upon in a contract between the creator and the manufacturer, publisher, agent, and/or distributor. “ Inventors, authors, movie makers, music composers, scriptwriters, musicians, interpreters, translators, and other creators of an intellectual product , contract with manufacturers, publishers, movie production companies, producers, event organizers, agents, and distributors to be paid royalties in exchange for a license or authorization to manufacture or sell the product. Royalties are payments made by one entity (the licensee) to another entity (the licensor) in exchange for the right to use intellectual property or physical assets owned by the licensor.

In a situation like the one I describe above, the speaker at the podium is the author of the knowledge and information he is disseminating among the attendees to the conference. He owns that intellectual property. The interpreters in the booth are the authors of the content in the target language of the knowledge and information the speaker at the podium disseminated in the source language. Both, the speaker (in the source language) and the interpreters (in the target language) would be licensors to the attendee who requested the recording when he went to the booth. This individual would be the licensee to the speaker as far as the knowledge and information disseminated by the speaker during the speech, and for the elocution of the contents in the source language. He would also be the licensee to the interpreters for the rendition of the speech into the foreign (signed, or indigenous) target language.

The attendee would need, at least, the authorization of the speaker to record the presentation in the source language, and the consent of both, speaker and interpreters to record the presentation in the target language. Attendee would need to negotiate the payment of royalties with speaker and interpreters, and all licensors would need to be compensated for the use of their intellectual property.

It could be more complicated; the speaker may have partners who coauthored the paper he is presenting; a university, government, or other entity may be the legal holder to the intellectual property rights because of a contractual agreement between the speaker and his sponsors. The interpreters could have negotiated the sale of their intellectual property (the rendition into the target language) to the agency that retained them, the main speaker, the university, government or other entity who sponsored the research, or any other party legally entitled to said intellectual property. It is never as simple as letting the attendee record your rendition.

Years ago, interpreters would get to the booth, and whenever there were no speakers of the target language they were there to interpret, they would just sit in the booth doing very little. There were no “customers” for their intellectual product. This has changed. Now often interpreters must interpret into their target language even if there are no speakers in the room, because there may be others virtually attending the presentation from a remote location, or because the speech, and its interpretation into several target languages, will be sold to others who could not attend the live event.

For this reason interpreters must know of the event organizer’s plans. If there will be a video or audio recording of the presentation, we must negotiate royalties. Those fees belong to us, not to the speaker or the event organizer; and they do not belong in the pockets of the agency that hired us to do the conference. As interpreters we must be very careful of what we sign. Speaker and event organizer may be paying royalties to the agency for the recording, and the interpreting agency may not be passing these payments on to you, the rightful owner.

Interpreters can negotiate this intellectual property rights. They can sell them to a third party if they wish to do so. They can even transfer them for free. It is up to the skill and business mind of the interpreter to decide what to do, but we must know that we can negotiate; that we are in the driver’s seat. I would allow no type of recording of my work unless I get paid royalties. How I negotiate payment, how to calculate them, and whether or not I will settle for a lump payment or a recurring payment every time the recording is sold, will depend on the content, and my long term relationship with that client.

Please do not ignore your intellectual property rights. The United States Code, Code of Federal Regulations, and other legislation will protect us in the U.S., but when working abroad, and even when the work product (recorded rendition) will be sold abroad, or the licensee entity is a foreign national, check local legislation and look for any international treaty. Finally, regardless of the location of the job, always include an intellectual property/payment of royalties clause in your interpreting services contract. At the minimum you should prohibit any recording of your rendition without your written consent.

I now invite you to leave your comments and to share your experiences with this issue that will be more pervasive every day.

Most professional, dedicated, court interpreters in Europe and the United States are constantly fighting against the establishment: government authorities who want to dodge the responsibility of administering justice to all, regardless of the language they speak, by procuring a warm body next to the litigant in the courtroom regardless of the skill and knowledge of the individual; ignorant and egotistical judges who believe they know everything about language access and interpreting, and make absurd decisions, when they know less about our profession than anyone else in the room; bilingual lawyers who cannot tell the difference between being a professional interpreter and speaking a second language with limited proficiency; monolingual attorneys who believe interpreting is easy and interpreters are only an intransigent bunch demanding nonsensical work conditions (like team interpreting) and get paid for what they do more than they deserve; and of course, greedy unscrupulous agencies who spend most of their time trying to figure out two things: How to pay interpreters less, and how to sell a mediocre paraprofessional low fee foreign-language speaker to their clients.

There are exceptions everywhere and in some latitudes court interpreting can be performed at a high quality level (even though, in my opinion, most court interpreters are still getting paid very little compared to the other actors in a court proceeding such as attorneys, expert witnesses, and judges), but there are no places, that I know of, at least in the United States, where you can find the support, understanding, and respect I found in Mexico during their transition from written court proceedings to oral trials where interpreters play a more relevant role they ever did under the old system.

Cubi (editor) Me, Carreon, Maya

During the last two years I have attended many conferences, meetings, one-on-one interviews, where I have talked to the parties invested in the system about the work court interpreters do, the need for some quality control process such as an accreditation or certification of the professional court interpreter, the non-negotiable principle that interpreters must make a professional fee that will let them have the lifestyle they may choose and will retain them as practitioners of the interpreting profession, and the work conditions for the professional court interpreter to provide the expected service. I have had many memorable experiences, and I will share with you those that I consider essential turning points in the design of the court interpreting profession in Mexico.

For the past two years I have attended the “Taller de profesionalización de los servicios de interpretación de Lengua de Señas Mexicana en el ámbito jurídico” (Professionalization of Mexican Sign Language legal interpreting services workshop), the brain child of Mexico’s federal judge Honorable María del Carmen Carreón, who has done more for the court interpreting profession than any person I know who is not an interpreter. Judge Carreón and her team organized these workshops that bring together Mexican Sign Language interpreters from all over the Mexican Republic, the most influential Sign Language Interpreter professional associations in the country, legal and language scholars, attorneys from all fields, and judges from all levels and jurisdictions: from Federal Supreme Court Justices and State Supreme Court Justices, to federal and state criminal, civil, family, administrative, and electoral judges.

These participants meet for three days at different locations: courthouses and universities, to learn from each other, and exchange ideas on how to make it easier for court interpreters so they can fulfill their role in the administration of justice to all individuals, regardless of the language they speak. The new court interpreting manual I recently published results from this extraordinary professional relationship that has developed among my co-authors: Judge Carreón and Daniel Maya, president of the largest professional association of Sign Language interpreters in Mexico, and me (Manual del Intérprete Judicial en México, Carreón, Rosado, Maya. Editorial Tirant Lo Blanch).

Judge Hernandez

During these trips, I have witnessed the willingness of all parties to learn the new system together, I heard often about the commitment to a good professional fee for those interpreters who get a court interpreter patent as a “perito” (equivalent to a certification or accreditation in other countries), and I saw a system with a new culture of cooperation where interpreters getting materials and full access to a case will be the rule and not the exception. I saw how all actors understand the need for team interpreting without even questioning the reasons behind this universally accepted policy. I heard judges telling interpreters to come to them with their suggestions and requests, and lawyers who want to learn how to work with the interpreter. Our manual has been presented before many institutions, including courthouses and attorneys’ forums to standing room only.

It was at one workshop, and through Judge Carreón, that I met Mexico City Civil Court Judge Eliseo Juan Hernández Villaverde and Mexico City Family Court Judge Teófilo Abdo Kuri. Both judges graciously invited me to their courtrooms so I could observe how the oral proceedings are being carried under the new legislation, and to have a dialogue on court interpreters’ best practices so our Mexican colleagues can provide their service under close to ideal conditions.

At their respective courtrooms I met their staff and I saw how everyone was treated with dignity and respect. After fruitful talks with both judges, I observed the proceedings, and afterwards met with the judges to physically suggest changes to the courtroom to make it more “interpreter-friendly” to both: sign and spoken language interpreters. To my surprise, these suggestions were welcomed immediately, and Judge Hernández Villaverde rearranged the courtroom right on the spot, in my presence, to make sure that everything was as suggested. Finally, it was agreed that court interpreters and those studying interpreting will have regular visits to their courtrooms where they will observe proceedings and after the hearing can ask questions to the judges.

Judge Abdo

A major factor in the success that Mexico is enjoying, is due to the absence of irresponsible interpreting agencies that hire a high school level “coordinator” to recruit paraprofessionals and convince them to work for a fee (they call rate) that will seem good to them (compared to their minimum wage job prior to becoming an “interpreter”) but would be insulting and disrespectful to any professional interpreter charging the professional fees that their service commands.

There are some in Mexico, judges, attorneys, and interpreters, who are not fully on board, but they are not stopping the new culture. They are not killing the excitement and willingness of all parties to grow professionally in the new legal system the country has adopted. There are many things to do, but an environment fosters the achievement of those goals.

I hope that me sharing the situation of the court interpreting profession in Mexico can inspire many of us in other countries and legal systems, and teach us to keep fighting for what is right without ever giving up in our dealings with the judiciary, and to never give in to the insulting conditions offered by those who want to see us as an “industry” instead of a profession. I now invite you to share with the rest of us your goals and achievements within your courthouses or hospitals (for healthcare interpreters).

2017 was a great year for many of us. Quite a few of you developed professionally and became better at what you do. I congratulate you for that important achievement; unfortunately, competitors are still out there, languages are still changing, technology continues to improve, and clients (agencies or direct corporations) will pay for what they need but are looking for the best service at the best price. The question is: How do we adapt to reality, keep up with technology, and improve our service? The answer is complex and it includes many issues that must be addressed. Like every January, at the dawn of a new year, the time for planning activities, and programming agendas, we will concentrate on one of them: Professional development.

It is practically impossible to beat the competition, command a high professional fee, and have a satisfied client who does not want to have anything to do with any other interpreter but you, unless you can deliver quality interpreting and state-of-the-art technology. We need to be better interpreters. We must study, we must practice our craft, we should have a peer support network (those colleagues you call when in doubt about a term, a client or grammar) and we must attend professional conferences.

I find immense value in professional conferences because you learn from the workshops and presentations, you network with colleagues and friends, and you discover what is happening out there in the very competitive world of interpreting. Fortunately there are many professional conferences all year long and all over the world. Fortunately (for many of us) attending a professional conference is tax deductible in our respective countries. Unfortunately there are so many attractive conferences and we must choose where to go. I understand that some of you may attend one conference per year or maybe your policy is to go to conferences offered near your home base. I also know that many of you have professional agendas that may keep you from attending a particular event even if you wanted to be there. I applaud all organizations and individuals who put together a conference. I salute all presenters and support staff that makes a conference possible, and I wish I could attend them all.

Because this is impossible, I decided to share with all of you the 2018 conferences I am determined to attend. In other years I have attended more conferences than the ones on my list, last-minute changing circumstances and personal commitments let me go to events I had not planned to attend at the beginning of the year.

As of today, the conferences I plan to attend this year are:

The Association of Translators and Interpreters of Florida (ATIF), ATA Spanish Language Division (SPD) and Florida International University (FIU) “In Miami Spring Into Action” in Miami, Florida, (March 16-18). I will attend this conference because of the program they have put together with top-notched presenters, interesting topics, and the college environment of FIU’s campus. If you are a Spanish language interpreter, translator, proof-reader, linguist, teacher, or you just love Spanish, this is an event impossible to miss.

Congreso XV Aniversario Asetrad in Zaragoza, Spain, (May 18-20). I always attend Asetrad’s congress because it does not happen every year, which gives me plenty of time to plan ahead since I live in the United States, and because it allows me to listen to some of the best presenters from a country with such rich tradition on interpreting and translating as Spain. Those of us who live in the Americas should take advantage of these events where we get to see and hear presenters who do not travel to the events in the Americas. I also enjoy the invaluable experience of learning about the problems my colleagues are facing across the Atlantic, and hopefully learn from the strategy they resorted to solve a problem that could be similar (sometimes identical) to a situation we may be fighting in the United States at this time. I hope that my Spanish speaking colleagues from the Americas travel to Zaragoza for this exciting event.

The International Association of Professional Translators and Interpreters (IAPTI) Annual Conference in Valencia, Spain (September 29-30). I go to this conference because it is IAPTI. Because it is about us, the interpreters and translators! This conference, and this organization presents a unique viewpoint of our profession I consider priceless. It is the only international conference of this size where there are no corporate sponsors. All you see is translators and interpreters like you. Some results of this innovative approach are that the conference attracts a very important group of colleagues that stay away from other events because they are bothered by the corporate presence. This is the conference to attend if you want to learn how to deal with agencies, corporate clients and governments, because the absence of all those other players fosters this dialogue. You can attend the presentations and workshops knowing that no presenter is there to sell you anything and that is fun to have at least once a year. See you all in Valencia!

American Translators Association ATA 59 Conference in New Orleans, LA (October 24-27). Every year, the American Translators Association puts the biggest show on earth. More presentations to choose from, more attendees, more opportunities to network, and wonderful NOLA! I enjoy attending ATA conferences because of the variety, organization, and the many friends and colleagues I get to see every year. However, to take advantage of the conference without being exposed to the many predators that attend every year in the form of agencies, vendors, and “well-intentioned colleagues”, I pick my activities very carefully and never losing sight of the obvious presence of those who want to destroy our profession and turn it into an industry of commodities. With that warning, go to New Orleans and enjoy the conference, jazz and cuisine.

XXII Translation and Interpreting Congress San Jerónimo (FIL/OMT) in Guadalajara, Mexico (November 24-25) Every year the Mexican Translators Association (OMT) puts together a magnificent program featuring well-known presenters from all over the world. Coming from a very successful sold-out XXI Congress, the 2018 edition will have workshops and presentations in varied, useful, and trending topics. This is the activity to attend this year for those colleagues who work with the Spanish language. Extra added bonus: The Congress is held in the same venue (Expo Guadalajara) and at the same time as the International Book Fair, one of the largest in the Spanish language world. Besides the professional sessions, attendees can also stroll up and down the immense fairgrounds, purchase books, listen to some or the most renowned authors in the world, or just window shop between sessions.

I know the choice is difficult, and some of you may have reservations about professional gatherings like the ones I covered above. I also know of other very good conferences all over the world, some of the best are local, regional, and national events; others are specialized conferences tailored to a certain field of our profession. I would love to attend many but I cannot. Some of you will probably read this post in a group or website of an association whose conference I will not attend this year, you will probably see me at other conferences not even mentioned here; that is likely. To those I cannot attend this year: I wish you success and productive conferences. Remember, the world of interpreting is more competitive every day and you will need an edge to beat the competition. That advantage might be what you learned at one conference, or whom you met while at the convention. Please kindly share your thoughts and let us know what local, national or international conference or conferences you plan to attend in 2018.

Now that 2017 is ending and we are working towards a fruitful and meaningful 2018, it is time to assess what we learned during the past 12 months. As interpreters we are constantly learning, and from talking to many of my colleagues, 2017 was packed with learning opportunities. The year that ends gave me once again the opportunity to work with magnificent interpreters and many of my dearest colleagues.

Our profession had positive developments this year: The International Federation of Translators (FIT) held a very successful conference in Brisbane, Australia where those of us in attendance could see many friends and colleagues advancing our professions throughout the world. It was personally very instructive, and inspiring, to see how interpreting services in Aboriginal languages and Sign Language interpreting in many languages have grown and developed In many countries. I witnessed how the interpreting profession has moved forward in Mexico, as evidenced by the Organización Mexicana de Traductores’ (Mexican Translators Association, OMT) very successful conference in Guadalajara, The Autonomous University of Hidalgo’s University Book Fair and content-rich conference in Pachuca, and the very inspiring second court interpreter workshop and conference for Mexican Sign Language (LSM) that took place in Mexico City with the tremendous backing of the Mexican judiciary. The International Association of Professional Translators and Interpreters brought its world congress to the Americas for the first time, and the decision could not be better: An unprecedented number of colleagues from North and South America attended the event and benefited from IAPTI’s philosophy and the quality of the presentations in beautiful Buenos Aires. This, and the workshops and talks I gave in Mexico to colleagues and students, including a very special invitation to the Autonomous University of Guadalajara (UAG) have helped me understand why the profession is growing south of the border, successfully taking the challenge by their government’s total revamp of their judicial process. I also could participate in other professional conferences and seminars of tremendous level where I was honored to share experiences and exchange ideas with many professional colleagues. Thank you to all my colleagues who attended my presentations, workshops and seminars in Querétaro, Mexico City, Charlotte, San Antonio, Buenos Aires, Washington, D.C., Brisbane, Pachuca, Montevideo, Guadalajara, Seattle, Chicago, La Paz, and Baltimore. It was a pleasure to spend time with all of you in 2017.

The year that ends in a few days saw the growth of our profession in the healthcare field. Remote Simultaneous Interpreting (RSI) had a landmark year as it listened to the professional conference interpreters and treated them with respect in both, labor conditions and professional fees. It also defined itself and marked an important distinction between the quality of Remote simultaneous interpreting (RSI) and video remote interpreting (VRI) the “industry’s” option. Once again, I noticed the growth of our profession in Africa where our friends and colleagues held several professional events.

Unfortunately, not everything was good. Our court and healthcare interpreter colleagues in the United States continued their fight against “peer” mediocrity, government ignorance, and agency greed. 2017 saw the biggest shift in American foreign policy in decades and this affected our profession. Events held in the United States for many straight years left for other countries because of the uncertainty of American immigration policy. It is very difficult to plan a big conference and invest a lot of money, without the certainty that attendees from certain countries will be admitted to the United States for the event. International government programs that require of interpreting services was at an unprecedented low, and changes of personnel in the administration, at all levels, impacted the work available to interpreters in the diplomatic and international trade arena.

Apparently some bad situations remain alive, like the one suffered by the state-level court interpreters in New Mexico, and other court interpreters in some American east coast states. These colleagues continue to fight against low pay, deplorable working conditions, favoritism, ignorant government program administrators, and other problems. Some European countries, like Spain and the United Kingdom, continue to fight low quality translation and interpreting services in the legal arena.

Once again, interpreters around the world faced attempts from special interest groups to erode our profession by lowering professional standards and creating questionable certification programs, the multi-national language agencies continued to push telephone interpreting whenever, and wherever they can, offering rock-bottom per minute fees to the interpreters. Some board members in one professional translator and interpreter association maneuvered to oust two of the most valuable and recognized members of our professional community, and this jury (me) is still out on the question of the future of the association.

On a personal positive note, 2017 was the year when a long-time goal was reached: with my distinguished friends and colleagues, María del Carmen Carreón and Daniel Maya, we published the first ever text on court interpreting in Mexico within the new legal system the country recently adopted. The publication: “Manual del Intérprete Judicial en México” has been embraced by interpreters, judges, and attorneys throughout Mexico, and so far, the sales are handsome in many Spanish-speaking countries.

Of course, no year can be one hundred percent pariah-safe, so we had our “regulars” just like every single year: 2017 was full of para-interpreters trying to “take over” the market by charging laughable fees under shameful working conditions in exchange for miserable services.

As you can see, dear friends and colleagues, much changed and much stayed the same. I think that there were more good things than bad ones, but I continue to be aware of the awesome problems we still face as a profession from threats that come from without and within. I now invite you to share with the rest of us your learned lessons (good and bad) of 2017.

I wish a Happy and Productive New Year to all my friends and colleagues!